Wallpapering 101

Lesson 1: Wallpaper

Tools of the Trade

There are lots of things involved with the hanging of wall-coverings. First of all, you need the tools of the trade. The most important tool you will need is the table to do your work on. There are wallpapering tables available at paint stores and wallpaper supply houses, but they are expensive and usually only used by professionals. A lot of do it yourselfers will make due with what they have available around the house, which usually means the kitchen or dining room table. This will work as long as it’s covered, and as long as you have a long plank or long piece of wood available to do your vertical cutting on when you have to make your lengthways cuts for pattern matching at the corners. The longer the table the better, where the ideal table length is at least seven feet, and the width is at least three feet. I built my own table out of re-enforced ½ inch plywood. It’s exactly seven foot long and I use that length as a measuring device when making my paper cuts. My table is three feet wide and has a piano hinge down the center of its seven foot length where it will neatly fold up when not in use.

There are wallpapering kits available at most paint and hardware stores. These kits usually include a smoothing brush, a razor blade holder with a few razor blades, and a seam roller. Some kits have more tools than others, depending on the cost. For vinyl paper, I suggest using a flat plastic scraper about ten inches in width instead of the smoothing brush that comes with the kit. The brush can be used initially when the paper is first hung, but the plastic scraper will do a better job smoothing the paper for the final product. There are two types of brushes available, a softer brush for paper and a stiffer brush for vinyl.

A good pair of sharp scissors is a necessity for cutting around light switches and receptacles, as well as snipping corner creases where the razor blade won’t reach. I usually wear a carpenter’s tool belt so all of my tools are handy when I am up on a ladder working. You can’t hold the paper against the wall and go off somewhere to get needed tools at the same time. Before the paper is completely secured to the wall, it can easily fall off.

A two to four foot level and a No. 3 pencil are also needed, along with a soaking pan usually lightweight plastic) that is at least 30 inches wide. They also have models available that are four foot wide. A No. 3 pencil should be used because the lead isn’t as dark and the pencil markings are less likely to show up through the seams that have been marked. You’ll also need a five or six inch spackling blade to hold up against corners, ceilings, and wood trim when cutting the paper after it is hung. A measuring tape will be needed as well as an open faced four foot step ladder. If you are hanging paper on walls higher than those with the standard eight foot ceilings, a higher step ladder will be needed. Open faced steps are best because they eliminate the constant sideways twisting of the body, and allow you to constantly face your work.

You’ll also need a yard stick and a long aluminum or zinc cutting surface for making long straight cuts down the length of the paper. I have a special 7 foot wallpapering table that I built for myself and use an 8 foot aluminum straight edge to mark and cut the paper. I just cut into the wood on the table with the razor blade. There aren’t usually that many long cuts needed to paper a room. You’ll also need a large sponge and a bucket to use in washing down the paper after it’s hung.

I have entered this in the border hanging section, but I’ll mention it here too. When hanging borders that are pre-pasted, you’ll need a spray bottle to dampen down the pre-pasted area of the border with a water mist before applying vinyl to vinyl paste.

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